Ideas for cooking sausages

Porcini Mushroom Risotto

Pasta alla Boscaiola

Risotto with Sausages and Porcini Mushrooms

The risotto with sausage and porcini mushrooms is a true classic of Italian cooking and can be used as a starter or as a main.

Ingredients         [ Serve 4 people ]

250gr of La Tradizione sausage – both La Classica and La Mediterranea would suit this dish

360gr of risotto rice (Arborio or Carnaroli). Some other types of short grain rice may work as well

About 1.5L of good chicken stock. Hot – Better if homemade

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1 shallot finely chopped 
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30gr of unsalted butter 
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2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

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40gr of dried porcini mushrooms 
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1 glass of white wine 
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4 tablespoons of grated parmigiano plus extra to serve

Method

Wash the mushrooms and place them in warm water for about 20 minutes or until they are fully rehydrated and they look nice and plump. Put 30 grams of butter and the olive oil in a pan with high edges and start heating gently.

Remove the sausage meat from its case, divide it in smaller bites and sear them.

Remove the sausage from the pan and put them aside.

Add the finely chopped shallot with a pinch of salt which will help the shallot to cook down quicker.

Once the shallot is translucent and soft, raise the heat under the pan, add the rice and toast the grains for a couple of minutes making sure that they are all covered with the melted butter and olive oil mixture.

Put the sausage back in the pan, add the drained mushrooms and pour the wine in.

Let it reduce until the wine is fully evaporated.

Lower the temperature and start adding the stock one or two ladles at the time while keep stirring the risotto rice.

The risotto will be ready in about 10 to 15 minutes or when it is nice and al dente (it is fully cooked but retains a bit of a bite).

Remove the pan from the heat and allow the risotto to rest for a couple of minutes.

Season it to taste, add the remaining butter cut in small cubes, the parmigiano and the risotto should now be nice and creamy. If it is a bit dry just add some extra stock.

Serve in warm plates with a sprinkle of parmigiano on top.

Please note that if you decide to use La Mediterranea sausage you can replace the mushrooms with a grated courgette which can be added in at the same time as the mushrooms would have been.

Lentil Stew with Sausages and Crushed Baby Potatoes

This is a fantastic winter warmer which would please the whole family

Ingredients        [ Serve 4 people]

For the lentil and sausage stew

6 Sausages La Speziata from La Tradizione – you can use any of the other flavours if you have them available.

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350gr of lentils 
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2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

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1 Medium onion finely chopped 
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1 Medium carrot finely chopped 
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1 Celery stick finely chopped 
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2 Garlic cloves finely chopped or pressed with a garlic press

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Hot water or stock 
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2 bay leaves 
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Cayenne pepper to taste (optional) 
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Salt to taste 
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For the crushed baby potatoes

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1 Kg of soapy baby potatoes 
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Salt to taste
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Freshly ground pepper 
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Some good quality olive oil 
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Method

Start by soaking the lentils for 3 hours or until they double in size.

Place the olive oil, the chopped vegetables and the bay leaves with a pinch of salt in a large pot and let them sweat on a gentle heat for a few minutes until nice and soft.

In another pot place the baby potatoes split in two lengthways, cover with water, add enough salt to season the potatoes and bring to the boil.

Lower the heat and let them simmer until fully cooked. You can check if they are fully cooked by poking them with a knife. If the knife gets in easily enough they are ready.

You can leave the potatoes in hot water until the lentil stew is ready to be served.

Meanwhile take the sausages out of the packet and pierce them with a fork in several parts in order to let the extra juices to come out of the sausage casing.

Add the sausages to the pot and sear them well giving them a nice colour. Cook them in batches if necessary.

Once the sausages are nice and coloured add the drained lentils, add some salt and cayenne pepper (optional) and enough hot water to cover them. Cover the pot with its lid, raise the heat and bring everything to the boil.

Lower the heat and allow the lentils and sausages to cook for about half an hour or until the lentils are nice and soft, stirring occasionally.

Add some more water and adjust with more salt and cayenne if required.

The dish should have the consistency of a very tick stew and should not be watery. If there is an excess of water remove the lid and bring to the boil until the dish reaches the correct consistency.

Once the stew is ready to be served you can drain the potatoes and crush them with a spoon, add a good bit of olive oil, freshly ground pepper and mix together.  The result is an extremely tasty mash potatoes.

Serve the stew and the potatoes together while hot.

Sausage and Beans in Tomato Sauce

This dish (salsicce e fagioli) is a classic of Italian cuisine. It is a delicious rustic dish that would please the whole family.

Ingredients        [ Serve 4 people ]

6 La Tradizione Italian style sausage. You can use la Classica or La mediterranea for this dish as they are the ones that work best.

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One onion finelly chopped 
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300ml of passata - You can use one can of tinned tomatoes if you prefer

Some herbs like basil or rosemary (optional)

2 Cans of tinned beans. I would usually choose cannellini but butter beans work just as well

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One teaspoon of sugar 
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Salt and pepper to taste 
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Fresh chillies or cayenne pepper to taste (optional)

Two tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

Method

Cook the onion in the olive oil, on a medium heat with a pinch of salt to speed up the cooking.

While the onion is cooking, pierce the sausages with a fork in four or five points.

Once the onion is nice and soft, add the sausages and cook them for a few minutes to brown them.

Once the sausages have reached a nice caramelised colour and release some of their juices, add the passata, the herbs, the sugar, chillies or cayenne pepper (optional) and some salt and pepper. Add a glass of water as well.

Mix everything, cover with a lid and bring to the boil.

Once the sauce starts boiling reduce the heat and let simmer for 20 to 30 minutes stirring occasionally.

Once the consistency of the sauce has thickened the tomato sauce is cooked.

At this stage drain the beans and add them to the sauce. Keep cooking for another 10 minutes, adjust the seasoning if required and serve on hot plates.

This dish can be served with some greens on the side or some boiled potatoes dressed with olive oil.

Polenta with Sausages and Pork ribs

This is a great winter dish as polenta is always associated with colder climates.

At the same time the sauce can also be used to dress pasta (tagliatelle, fettuccine or even gnocchi).

Ingredients        [ Serve 4 people ]

4 la Tradizione Italian Sausages, you can use the one you like the most from our range of flavours.

Pork ribs-2/3 per person depending on how meaty they are.

1 medium onion finely chopped (red onion is preferable)

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2 garlic cloves finely chopped 
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1 tablespoon of olive oil 
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½ glass (100 ml) of red wine 
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Chopped fresh chillies or chilli powder to taste (optional)

750ml of passata or 2x400gr of canned tomatoes

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Salt and pepper  
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One teaspoon of sugar 
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240gr of polenta (60 gr PP)
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Method

For the sauce

In a large, high edged pan with lid start browning the meat in batches.

Put the oil in the pan over a medium/high heat, add the ribs first, season them with salt and pepper and brown them on all their sides. Remove from the ribs from the pan and brown the sausages (no seasoning required for them).

Remove the sausages from the pan, add the chopped onion and season with a pinch of salt to help cook faster. Once the onion is nice and soft, add the garlic and cook for a couple of minutes.

Add the meat back in the pan, raise the heat and add the wine. Cook for about 5 minutes until the alcohol has cooked off.

Add the passata/canned tomatoes, season with salt and pepper (to taste), add the sugar, cover with lid and bring to the boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat and bring it to a gentle simmer. Let it cook for an hour or so stirring occasionally.

When the sauce is cooked it should be nice and velvety while the meat nice and soft.

You can adjust the seasoning at this stage and add the chopped fresh chilli or the chilli powder.

If there is some excess oil in the sauce this can be scooped out and discarded.

For the polenta

Cook the polenta according to the instructions on the packet.

It will usually cook in about 10 minutes.

To serve, place a couple of spoonfuls of polenta on a plate top it up with the sauce, the sausages and some of the ribs.

You can serve this dish with some sauteed courgette or some Brussel sprouts.

Pasta alla Boscaiola

This pasta dish is a combination of sausage meat and mushrooms with a touch of cream.

This recipe uses short types of pasta like penne, rigatoni or similar. Great for a quick dinner and a change from the usual Bolognese pasta.

Ingredients       [ Serve 4 people ]

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2/3 La Classica sausages
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360 grams of pasta (rigatoni, penne or tortiglioni work best)

1 can of chopped tomatoes or similar amount of passata

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1 tablespoon of olive oil 
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1 medium onion finely chopped (red onion is preferable)

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Salt and pepper 
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1 teaspoon of sugar 
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10/15 grams of dry porcini mushrooms (rehydrate) or some type of wild mushrooms

200 grams of fresh mushrooms of your choice-cleaned and sliced

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1 to 2 tablespoons of fresh cream 
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100 grams of grated parmigiano
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Method

Start rehydrating the porcini mushrooms by putting them in a mug and covering them with warm water for about 10 minutes.

Once they are nice and soft you can discard the water and roughly chop them.

Heat up the oil in on a medium heat in a large pan (large enough to contain the pasta too once cooked), toss in the chopped onion and a pinch of salt to cook it faster.

While the onion is cooking remove the sausage meat from its skin, break up the meat a little leaving nice chunks of meat and add it to the onion until is cooked on the outside.

We can now add both fresh and rehydrated mushroom, cook for about 5 minutes and add the tomatoes.

Adjust the seasoning and add the sugar. Bring the sauce to the boil, cover it with a lid and lower the heat to allow it to simmer gently.

Cook the sauce for about half an hour stirring occasionally.

If after this time the sauce is still a bit watery, remove the lid to allow the excess water to evaporate.

Add the cream and cook for a further 5 minutes on a gentle heat and check for seasoning.

Cook the pasta in plenty of salted water until al dente.

“Al dente” means the pasta still has a bit of a bite and it is not overcooked/mushy.

Once the pasta has been drained it can be added to the pan with the sauce, sprinkle the parmigiano on top of it and mix well before dishing it out.

Pasta with white ragu’

This recipe is a variant of the world famous ragù or Bolognese pasta sauce. The main differences here are that for this recipe you will be using stock and herbs rather than tomato sauce and we will be using La Tradizione’s Italian style sausages.

Ingredients         [ Serve 4 people ]

400 grams of pasta (Tagliatelle, Pappardelle or Rigatoni work best with this recipe.)

4 La Tradizione Italian style sausages (Classica and Mediterranea are possibly the best ones for this recipe but feel free to experiment with the other flavors if you fancy)

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Salt and pepper to taste 
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Olive oil 2 tablespoons 
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1L of vegetable stock or stock cube. If you want to make your own stock what is required is
one onion, one large carrot, one celery stick, a couple of bay leaves and a small bunch of
parsley (optional)

Half a large onion pealed and finely diced

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1 large carrot pealed and finely diced
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1 stick of celery washed and finely diced

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2 bay leaves
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2 rosemary sprigs
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4/5 juniper berries crushed (optional)
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 100 ml of red wine (white would do too)

Method

Start by removing the sausage meat from the casings and break it up in medium size chunks.

In a pan large enough to accommodate the ragù and the pasta eat up the oil on medium heat before adding  the chopped carrot, onion, celery, bay leaves, juniper berries and rosemary and a pinch of salt to help cooking the veg. Cook until they are nice and soft. Remove the juniper berries.

Add the sausage meat to the soffritto and brown it before adding the wine. Once the wine has cooked off start adding the stock one ladle at the time. Let the liquid reduce by half befor adding another ladle of stock. Replete the operation and cook the ragù for half an hour/45 minutes. The ragù should look saucy. Don’t leave it too wet.

When the sauce is almost ready start cooking the pasta.


Once the pasta is al dente, drain it, add it to the ragù, give it a mix using tongs or two forks and finish cooking it with the ragù on a low/medium heat for a couple of minutes. Add a bit of stock if the pasta is too dry.

Once the pasta is ready to be served remove the rosemary and the bay leaves before serving it in warm pasta bowls.

Buon appetito

For the Stock

tip into a large pot all the ingredients for the stock, add 2/3 liters of water and some salt. Place the lid of the pot on before placing it on high heat until it starts boiling, drop the heat and let simmer for 45 minutes.

Cook the pasta in plenty of salted water until al dente.

“Al dente” means the pasta still has a bit of a bite and it is not overcooked/mushy.

Once the pasta has been drained it can be added to the pan with the sauce, sprinkle the parmigiano on top of it and mix well before dishing it out.